Much better than I anticipated!
Ok, I know it seems odd to give any God of War game 5 stars, then act as if I'm surprised by it. I'll explain my reasoning behind the review title. As you may or may not know, there has been some criticism thrown in the direction of God of War Ascension. Heck, just look at all of the 3 star reviews here on Amazon! In conjunction with the criticism and 3 star reviews, I was very hesitant when I heard about multiplayer being incorporated in the game. From my personal observations, the inclusion of multiplayer usually detracts from the single player experience. With all of those red flags, how could I NOT be surprised when this turned out to be a 5 star game?
Combat- Ahh combat... I'll admit, the combat does feel a bit different when compared to previous God of War games. But, that doesn't have to be an awful thing, does it? I can't really put my finger on why it feels different, but it does. Now, some people have mentioned that the parry attack has drastically changed. Well, one of two things is happening here: A) The change is very minor, and I didn't notice. B) I'm far too dumb to even realize something changed. (The latter is probably correct, but that's a topic for another day). The combos were easy to execute, and I had a blast whenever I encountered enemies. I primarily judge combat based on one key thing - rather or not I looked forward to fighting enemies. There have been games *COUGHS spyro COUGHS* where I would break down and cry whenever I was forced to fight, that's how atrocious the combat was (I apologize for the cough, I haven't dusted around my computer in a few days). The combat in God of War Ascension is spot on, and I enjoyed every fight, down to the final encounter. Oh, I almost forgot... You can use magic attacks as part of your combat, if you get tired of the hack and slash approach. I won't go into too much detail about magic attacks. If you read any of my reviews, you'll know I'm not fond of magic attacks in any game. Magic attacks - blah blah blah, that's the extent of what I'll say about those.
Weaponry - I was very pleased with the weapons, and I like the big change that was made. Of course, Kratos has his usual blades, that's a given. In addition to his blades, you'll be able to pick up weapons from enemies, as well as stray weapons just lying around! I can't remember all of the weapons, so I'll do my best to name the ones I remember. Swords, shields, javelins, and my favorite; the mace! I'm sure I forgot some, but you get the picture. It's cool how you can hold on to these weapons as long as you please. Once I got ahold of the mace, I kept it for the rest of the game :) Earlier, I mentioned Kratos having his trusty blades. In God of War Ascension, having the blades is like having 4 weapons in one! As you progress through the game, you'll discover 4 'special' powers. The fire of Ares, the lightening of Zeus, the soul snatching power of Hades (not really sure how to articulate that one), and the ice of the great Poseidon! Each of these powers have very different effects on the blades, and in my mind, makes them 4 different weapons in one. You'll be able to use each of these at your discretion, so nothing will be forced on you.
Enemies - As I progressed through the game, I became a little concerned. I felt that I was seeing the same handful of enemies over and over again. Since the combat was so much fun, I thought I could overlook this, if it continued. Luckily, once I got into the later chapters, I started to see new enemies, so that was a big relief. I'll tell you what, there's nothing finer than a one on one battle with a Chimera!!! I wish there would have been more one on one battles (non boss battles) but that's not a big deal. Overall, I found the enemies to be tough to beat. I don't recall too many boss battles, but I thoroughly enjoyed the ones I did happen to partake in. Many reviewers have stated there were spikes in difficulty, in regards to the enemies. I didn't notice any spikes in difficulty because my butt kickings were pretty proportioned and consistent... Just sayin... When I think of spikes in difficulty, I think about some enemies being easy, then another group being harder, then the next group being easier, and so on. EVERY enemy tossed me around like a ragdoll, so perhaps I misunderstood the meaning of 'spikes in difficulty', or, maybe I just suck. You be the judge...
Miscellaneous - Wow! In regards to the puzzles, all I can say is wow! These are some of the hardest puzzles I've ever seen. I'd estimate I 'cheated' on about ehhh 95% of them, don't judge me... Nothing new in the collectibles department, just the usual Gorgon eyes and Fairy feathers or whatever the hell those things are. I think the game was a little bit shorter than God of War 3. It took me about 17 hours to get through this. If you're reading any of my reviews and wondering how long it would take you to complete a game, my advice would be to subtract 10 hours from any total I give.
I always try to point out at least one weakness in every game I review. The weakness I see is Multiplayer! I haven't played it that much, but I'm really stubborn about the inclusion of multiplayer in single player games. Although the single player campaign was great, maybe it would have been even better if more time was spent on single player, and less spent on Multiplayer? No? Ignore my multiplayer rant, I'm just resistant to change and I HAD to find something to whine about with the game. Great game for first time God of War players, and vets alike. Tomb Raider, you're up next! What's that? This game has multiplayer too?! Sighs...
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Reviewed in Mexico 🇲🇽 on February 16, 2020Edition: StandardVerified Purchase
